Equine Art Will Be On Display At Horse Show

Spring Garden Ranch, Known For Harness Racing, Also Will Have Olympic Medalists And Fast Dogs.

April 29, 2005|By Charlene Hager-Van Dyke, Sentinel Staff Writer

DELEON SPRINGS -- Spring Garden Ranch will be filled with a lot more than harness racing Sunday when sulky drivers make room for artists, Olympic medalists and racing dogs.

"EquiFest," which will take place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., is part of several equine events presented by the DeLand Museum of Art to raise funds for exhibitions and educational activities.

Jennifer Coolidge, the museum's executive director, said the event is part of a package the museum put together for the community.

"We wanted to bring the arts and the horse communities together, because there's an amazing equestrian community here and a cadre of talented equine artists," she said.

Included will be a "Horsetails and Cocktails: The Divine Equine Wine Reception" from 6 to 9 tonight; "Equus: Celebrating the Art of the Horse" exhibition through July 3; and the StarLite Derby Night gala May 7 from 5 to 9 p.m.

Coolidge said the exhibit, which was organized by museum supporters Judy Thompson and Jacquie Hart, came together first. Then they started talking about adding on it to include those who might not attend a gallery event.

"The whole thing was a labor of love for Judy, and she's been a motivator of the masses," Coolidge said.

Thompson, chairwoman of the EquiFest events and an avid collector of equine art, first planned a smaller event with a cookout at another location. She wanted to bring horse lovers and horses together and needed to ensure that art collectors had access to the equine artists. However, when the event started to grow, the 150-acre ranch was seen as the ideal location.

"There are a lot of equine artists in Florida, but not many places for them to come together with horse lovers," Thompson said. "Nowwe've run out of stalls. I told them we needed 39, and we're already up to 54."

Highlights of the festival will include demonstrations of dressage, jumping, reining, carriage driving, military riding and standard-breed racing, as well as a parade of 53 breeds, an equine art show featuring works by 17 artists, Jack Russell terrier races, presentations by Olympic dressage bronze medalists Michael Poulin and Carol Lavell and music by the Florida Strings quartet.

Today's opening reception at the museum will feature the rock band Running With Scissors, a meet-the-artists session, an adopt-a-sculpture event, and a cash wine and gourmet food bar.

The $50-per-person StarLite Derby at Thompson's home will feature the viewing of the 2005 Kentucky Derby and mingling with artists, as well as the Delightful Derby Contest, premiere wines and traditional Kentucky delicacies.

If the festival is a success and the artists and the horse people are willing, it may become an annual event, Thompson said.

Evie Salter, a longtime horsewoman and friend of Spring Garden Ranch, said the festival should interest many different people.

"A lot of people collect equine art, and this event will have a lot of it," she said.

Included in the miniature art display will be creations in bronze, steel, ceramic and photography, Coolidge said.

There will be a Pegasus horse, a Van Gogh horse, a seahorse, a techno horse and a horse carved out of a radish, which can be found in -- where else -- a salad bowl.